Two sides of the same coin
by NCR Ranger
Summary: Marcus Fenix: The father, and the Gear


_chhk…! chhk..!_

The old, weather beaten shovel in Marcus Fenix's hands bits deeply into the moist, rich soil of Sera , cleaving through the lush grass, and preparing a place for the brand new sapling on the Fenix Homestead.

 _chhk…!_

With the shovel's blade full, Marcus flung its load aside, then stabbed it back into the ground to continue his excavation. Again and again, he repeated the motion, while the sapling in question stood off to the side, neatly balanced on the sack that contained its roots, like a sentry.

As he set about deepening the shallow pit, it abruptly, and briefly, occurred to him that he was _digging_ a hole.….compared to how he'd spent the last 10 and a half years _filling_ them.

Or rather… _closing them…_

Emergence holes..

Literal _millions_ of them across Sera. Each time one of the damn things opened, it spewed out those hideous, gray, pointy toothed monsters they all knew and hated: the Locust. By the dozens, with Hammerburst rifles blazing at everything that moved and breathed.

" _Emergence hole ! Plug it up ! "_

" _We've got another Emergence hole ! Get a grenade in there ! "_

And so it went. The ground would gape open, and out they came…

….more times than he could- or wanted-to remember. Death, boiling up from beneath Marcus and his fellow Gears. The frantic rush to get a grenade into one of those openings., and stop the tide of snarling monsters before they could kill any more Serans…with sheets of Lancer bullets and the teeth of their chainsaw bayonets.

A few hours later, they'd do it all again. And again. Rinse and repeat.

All that chaos, all that devastation…and themonstrosities responsible came from simple holes in the ground.

Marcus realized he'd stopped digging. Instead, his hands, rough and calloused, rested on top of the shovel. He realized they were tightly clenched.

After a long moment of silence, he relaxed them, exhaled slowly and shook his …all of _that_ needed to stay buried. The war was _over._ The Locust were dead and gone. He'd made sure of it personally.

Yet, as he resolutely continued his digging efforts with another stab of the shovel, Marcus knew that he hadn't moved on completely from those days.

 _I served the COG for over 15 years_. _I fought in 2 world wars. I spent most of my life in army, and world, in conflict._

 _Hard to switch it off completely, even though I want to these days. After all…once a Gear, always a Gear._

He removed a few more shovelfuls of soil, when….

" Daddy… ! "

A little boy, with a mop of sandy hair and a joyful expression, raced toward him from the other side of the lawn, careening along on short but vigorously pumping legs.

He seemed to brim with that kind special kind childish boundless energy and buoyant happiness. Marcus recognized who it was before he even turned to meet him.

His son. James Dominic Fenix.

The cheerful youth's mood brought a smile to Marcus's face too. How could it not ? He let the shovel fall, and knelt to receive JD's charge.

" Well, hello there, Jamie ! " He effortlessly swept the boy up, cradling him securely in 2 powerful Gear arms. " You missed me, huh ? "

JD's wide grin didn't falter. " You went outside to do grown up work, right ? I wanna help. "

He pointed at the pit for the sapling, and Marcus was suddenly reminded of his own childhood: At that age, he too had wanted to do the work his father had done. _._

A wave of emotion hit him at that, and he struggled to hide it. _This…_ This is what he'd fought for: A world safe for not only the current generation, but the next one. It was his job, his new calling as a man who was still a Gear, but more importantly now..a father.

Y _ou don't need to follow me to become a Gear though, my James. Not yet._

 _Be a kid first._

He briefly but firmly hugged the toddler, then responded to JD's request, ruffling his hair.

" You want to dig down there ? Its hard work though. For big boys. "

That was exactly the thing to get JD motivated. His smile now shifted into one of determination, and he nodded.

" I'm one of them ! C'mon…"

Complying, Marcus set him down. He then reached into one of his pockets, and withdrew a small trowel, which he presented to JD.

" Ready to get to work ? "

" Yeah ! "

And so they did. On a beautiful day…

…on a beautiful world.


End file.
